How Dentists Can Take It Easy Until Retirement

– According to the ADA, the average retirement age for dentists in 2015 was 68.8, up from 66.1 in 2005.

– The Great Recession certainly had an impact on dentists’ incomes and, by extension, their retirement savings.

– Practice valuations declined, meaning that dentists who were ready to retire couldn’t get the prices they needed for their practices.

– At this point, practice incomes and valuations have largely recovered from the recession.

– If you’re in your 30s or 40s, you still have plenty of time to put your retirement on a firm footing.

– If you’re in your early 50s, you probably have time, barring another recession between now and your retirement age.

– If you’re in your late 50s or 60s, you could have a serious problem.

– Being able to retire as and when you want is one thing.

– What about the years leading up to retirement?

– Do you really want to wear out your back and neck hunching over the chair 35 hours a week?

– Do you enjoy an endless procession of drill-and-fills, routine exams, and one-offs?

– Or would you rather spend your time handling the cases you love to do?

– Dr. Travis Watson of Marietta, Georgia, has been pondering that question, and he has his answer.– He said, “A consistent goal that we have is to continue to have the new patients come in that are high-quality …

– “… who are interested in comprehensive dentistry, and really just want something better for themselves and aren’t just what we call single-tooth type situations.

– “They’re more of the fine cases that we enjoy doing, so that’s always going to be a goal for us as we move forward with a company like SmartBox to help us with that.”

– Dr. Scott Watterson probably isn’t looking at retirement any time soon, but he’s looking hard at his current quality of life.

– He said, “I have 4 kids and a wife and we’re all busy, but sometimes, being busy practicing dentistry is not what I want to be busy doing.

– “I coach soccer, I am involved with my kids’ lives, I value my marriage, and we spend a lot of time together, but not enough.

– “And so, at the end of the day, at the end of life, I want to be able to look back and say I spent the time I needed to with those that mattered most.”

– So, are you interested in ensuring a very comfortable retirement?

– Or do you want to enjoy life more now?

– If you don’t have a solid plan to accomplish either of those in a reasonable time frame, you’ll need to do something different.

– There’s a reason SmartBox has said that we help dentists get more patients, more profits, and more freedom.

– Our industry-leading Patient Attraction System® provides a steady stream of new patients so our doctors can focus on doing the dentistry.

– And as I discussed in an earlier podcast, the best time to put your practice on a solid footing is while the economy is good.

– Taking action now can give you more time to use as you wish.

– More time to handle the cases you love.

– More time to spend outside the office.

– And the time to prepare for the retirement you deserve.

– Discover what our Patient Attraction System® can do for your practice.